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Superfunds September 2015
boards. It also compares favourably to countries
such as the United States of America, Canada and
Hong Kong, according to a Credit Suisse survey.
And not only are more women being
appointed to Australian boards, but the quality
and disclosure levels of diversity reports by listed
companies in Australia are improving.
BlackRock has rated over 40 per cent of
diversity reports to the ASX in 2014 as either
excellent or good, up from 22 per cent in 2013.
So at some levels, it could be claimed that
achieving gender diversity is on track and that
little needs to be actively done to maintain the
momentum, but there are also some concerning
trends and statistics.
Perhaps of most concern is that, despite the
achievements at a board level, there has been
little improvement in the gender diversity levels of
senior management. Women are still worryingly
under-represented at the key management
personnel (KMP), executive director and non-
executive director ranks of ASX 200 companies.
This should be an issue of signifcant concern
for companies as well as for their shareholders,
employees and customers.
Indeed, BlackRock believe the business case
for achieving diversity is actually stronger at the
senior executive management level than at a
board level. This is because management has
more infuence over the overall performance of a
company than a board, including culture, values
and decision-making.
It suggests that companies are not managing
their talent appropriately, particularly when the
graduation rates of women from Australian
universities are considered. Women continue
to outnumber men as graduates, in particular
dominating in the felds of accounting, economics
and law. It is an issue that needs concentrated
focus on the part of business leaders. Effecting
lasting change in values, culture and decision-
making comes from senior management and
trickles down the organisational hierarchy.
Having women in management as
role models is important, as women
cannot be what they cannot see.
Logic suggests that companies
that manage their talent well should
outperform their peers, and one
of the key elements of managing
talent is ensuring that a full range
of skills and abilities are available
and utilised effectively throughout
an organisation.
More can be done to help
women progress into senior
management roles, which in
turn will help ensure there is an
appropriate pool of experienced
and qualifed women available to
take on board positions.
This would also help overcome
the concern that the same women
are being appointed to multiple
board positions. The relatively
small pool of women in senior
management positions means there is less choice
for boards seeking non-executive directors, and
also contributes to women being more likely to
hold multiple board roles than men. A total of 18
per cent of women on boards hold multiple board
positions, compared to only 11 per cent of men.
Another problem area is pay equity. Australian
men, overwhelmingly, continue to earn more
than their female counterparts. The largest gender
pay gap, according to data from the Workplace